I’ve a pair of Monkey Trees, both about 25 feet tall. I transplanted them about 15 years ago. One of the trees I got from a gentleman in New Westminster, who had apparently started it from a tree in Queen’s Park. I'll call this tree Charlie Brown(him?). The second tree I got from a lady in Haney who told me she bought it from a UBC garden sale or such. This magnificent tree I’ll call Lucy, and she(?) is a beauty. Not really knowing anything about these trees, although I must be doing something semi right because they seem to flourish(or at least Lucy does). This year I noticed Lucy sporting several large round cones. On the other hand Charlie Brown doesn’t seem to do much at all, kinda homely looking actually. I have read that these trees are wind germinated, and was quite hoping that I have the correct combination required for little monkey trees in their future. And how would I actually tend to that? And is there anyone who could explain the facts re Lucy getting cones but nothing from Charlie Brown? I really was hoping the Charlie Brown was male, although no cones yet...but Lucy looks pregnant as heck. When can I expect these cones to fall? Does the female produce cones that are infertile if no male present? I actually had a few Charlie Brown looking trees but sold them off because they were all spindly looking.
They're both still fairly young yet, one producing its first ever cones (which are seed cones), and the other not yet. Until it does, no way of telling whether it'll produce pollen cones or seed cones. The cones you have will be mature and break up in late August or September; try to beat jays and squirrels to the seeds when they fall. The pollen can blow a long way, so your cones may have been partly pollinated by other Monkey-puzzles elsewhere in the area - you may get a few viable seeds (plump, heavy) among lots of unpollinated thin seeds.
